Anchor
by ink-stained feathers
Summary: She'd turned her back on stupid fantasies completely, she was sure. Why, then, couldn't she get him out of her head?
1. Prologue

**Anchor**

**XXX**

I had never been the type of girl to believe in fairytales—heck, even when I was a kid, I'm pretty sure it was pressure from my friends, rather than genuine faith, that led me to think Santa Claus was real, or that the Tooth Fairy actually existed. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it, though; that mysterious edge to the unknown, things like aliens or secret agents…there were plenty of occasions where I truly wanted to believe that they were part of reality. _My_ reality.

Predictably, however, nothing so fanciful ever happened in my childhood, or my teenage years. I grew up, just as everyone else did, discarding those silly dreams as I focused on tangible reality.

Although…was I really like everybody else? There were countless times I felt out of place; I didn't care about others' opinions on me, and yet I was terrified of being hated or left out; I had my own opinions, personality, yet I never said a word; there were times that I wanted to end my life, yet was too cowardly to truly follow up; I felt nothing when someone died, yet I couldn't bear the thought of being alone. I was a walking contradiction, when I think about it—a hypocrite, a selfish inconsistency.

It was as if no one ever thought that I might have so much negativity beneath that calm, polite mask of mine. I didn't blame them, though; though I craved the attention, I never wanted anyone worrying themselves over me. Ha, another contradiction.

So when my therapist recommended I move to the country, I was a little taken aback. Was she so worried I'd jump off of a building? Or walk into traffic? She _did_ realize that moving cost money, didn't she? I was fresh out of college, unemployed and tight on cash. Despite this, as well and her constant reminders for me to be completely honest with her, I hadn't said a word; just smiled and said I'd consider it.

I did consider it, though, and when I saw that ad in the paper…well, I suppose it was in fact possible for me to be impulsive, leaving aside the fact that the price for the ranch was incredible, especially considering the quality. It seemed too good to be true—deep down, I knew that it had to be a sham, false advertisement.

The meds I was on at the time must have made me feel unreasonably optimistic, though, because before I knew it, my bags were packed and I was on the first bus out of town, completely unaware of what to expect. And I must admit, I did find things completely beyond my imagination—

Particularly in regards to forgotten dreams and silly fairytales.

**XXX**

**Right, so…this story kind of came from listening to "Never Too Late" by Three Days Grace and skimming through Skye fanfictions. I figure I haven't written about the guy in a while, and when I did…uh. Well, it wasn't his best moment. I wanted to write about a slightly nobler Skye—well, as noble as phantom thieves get. xD**

**Updates…I think they'll be kind of irregular. I haven't really thought out the plot (if any of my stories even have one. x_x ), so I'm going to try and brainstorm ideas while balancing high school work and activities. This'll be another multi-chapter story (insanity!), so I hope you'll stay with me. ^^;**

**Please excuse the rambling in the prologue. It was probably really monotonous, but I just wanted to set a few things straight about Claire's mindset. **


	2. Friends

**Anchor**

**XXX**

Making friends had never been my forte—in fact, most people generally annoyed me in some aspect until my presumptions were proved false or I got to know them better. Not only that; I was socially inept, to put it briefly. I had never been a chatterbox, there was nothing particularly striking about me, and I could never quite follow the gossip that flew this way and that. I'd never even had a real boyfriend.

Simply put, I was the generic blonde-haired, blue-eyed teenager; not particularly athletic or outwardly bright, fussy about appearance, always craving more than what I had.

Which was why I was exceptionally put out when I saw the large plot of land as I stepped off the bus onto the worn dirt road; it was a total and complete mess. The field was strewn with boulders and tree stumps of varying sizes, not to mention the weeds…Lord, the weeds. Green and brown had previously been two of my favorite colors, but after that ordeal, they were two shades I didn't want to see for a week thereafter.

Needless to say, it was a slow start for me. I spent the majority of my arrival simply standing in front of my house, wondering if I'd really wanted to do this—if I was capable of doing this. I'd never lived on my own; I'd never been so far from the safety of my home. I didn't know anyone, my savings were practically imaginary—

My prelude to a panic attack was interrupted by a brief tap on my shoulder.

"Miss Mitchell, I presume?"

I spun round, looking blankly into space for a moment before finally realizing that someone was in fact there; someone short, squat, particularly red, and, well…short. I had to be at least a head taller than the peculiar man before me. Despite these oddities, however, he knew my name, so it had to mean…

"You're Mayor Thomas, right?" I ventured.

He smiled at me over his glasses and nodded. "That's right. Welcome to Forget-Me-Not Valley, Miss Mitchell."

* * *

The next few weeks were largely spent adjusting to my new life, whether it was laboriously clearing the field, becoming familiar with the other villagers, or raking in money from whatever odd job I could secure. I was satisfied to find that my "ranch" was somewhat isolated from the rest of the town; the path to my new home was long and somewhat inconvenient, but I at least knew ahead of time if someone was coming to pay me a visit.

Which…wasn't all that often.

Kind as the townspeople were, I found myself going back on my unspoken promise to myself that I'd at least _try_ to be a bit more sociable. Whenever I reflected, I always came up with a way to justify it—not wanting to put myself in any awkward situations, or coming off as strange or annoying. Yet, the more I isolated myself, the more distant and aloof I probably seemed to them.

Which was why on one particular Saturday, I decided to push myself a little more than usual.

When I wasn't busy being anti-social, the inn was my regular haunt. Ruby, motherly and caring and helpful as she was, was always willing to spare some work for me if I needed the extra change (not to mention the facilities my ridiculous excuse for a house lacked). My first week here, Rock had always tried to make conversation with me, even despite my unwillingness to contribute. He'd given up after a while; I felt bad. Would it be strange if I tried to return the sentiment so randomly? Would it be considered "random?"

Well, whatever the definition, it could wait until later.

Shaking my head in an attempt to clear my mind, I made my way through the strangely empty lobby to the kitchen. Ruby wasn't at the front desk, so she was probably busy preparing breakfast for the residents. I really did admire her; dutiful, kind, talented, generous…the inn was lucky to have her. _I_ was lucky to have her. That kind of familiar, motherly care was more than welcome to me in this foreign place.

"Hey, Ruby? Do you—"

Ruby wasn't there. In her usual place before the table stood a boy instead—a boy I noted to be quite handsome when he whipped around to face me. Long, dark brown hair, eyes the color of amethysts…and clothes typical of what you might see on a mountain man. Huh. I _had_ heard there was another town further into the mountains…

"Uh…um…"

I blinked, popping back to reality and really looking at him for the first time in those few seconds—and was taken aback. In books, there was usually a character whose eyes supposedly were filled with hidden fear or sadness; in mountain boy's case, you could clearly see it splayed across his face. When I thought about it, he resembled a deer caught in highlights.

There was a short silence shared between us, me lingering in the doorway like an idiot, and he focusing on an apparently fascinating stain on the wood floor.

Well, this was getting awkward fast, and it didn't seem he had any intention of initiating a conversation.

"Uh…" I started hesitantly, wringing my hands behind my back, "Hey."

What a way to start off.

Despite this, mountain boy did raise his head a little, responding with a nearly incoherent "hello".

Another hush.

"Well, um. I'm Claire." I continued awkwardly, inclining my head slightly. Should I offer my hand? Or was that overly formal? Why did my mind have to race like this? Of all the people I had to run into, why did it have to be a _boy_? I was horrible with boys! Not to mention this one didn't seem too inclined to talk—

"…Cliff." Mountain boy mumbled.

I jumped slightly, blinking. "Pardon?"

"My name." He answered quietly. "It's Cliff."

Cliff. It seemed fitting. I offered the most friendly smile I could, trying my best to ignore my fraying nerves. "Cliff. It's, um, nice to meet you—"

I seemed to have a bad habit of being or saying something somewhere at the wrong time, because at that moment, a girl rocketed into the room past me, leaving me stumbling and gripping the stacked boxes of produce beside me for support.

"Here you are! I've been looking all over for you! Please, _please_ don't wander off like that, Cliff. I really do worry—oh, who's this?"

The girl was looking at me now, head tilted slightly to the side as we studied one another. She was cute, with long red hair tied up in a braid and clad in overalls similar to my own. Her eyes were a pretty shade of blue, full of life and vigor—a stark contrast to mine, I was certain.

Cliff took the lull as an opportunity to answer her. "Th…this is Claire. We just met…" He trailed off, and it seemed to me he was attempting to make himself as small as possible.

The girl blinked, nodding a few times before placing her hands on her hips and gesturing to herself. "Claire, huh?" She grinned. "I'm Ann. Nice to meetcha!"

**XXX**

**Aight, so, end of the first chapter. It leaves a little to be desired, but I don't want to get too far into things that it'll end up as a huge, tedious read. It's only the beginning, after all.**

**I'm really, really sorry the updates have been delayed. School and life in general have been super busy, and I just haven't gotten the urge to write in a while. I'm hoping the next chapter will come a bit more quickly, especially because we'll get to see some Skye. ;)**

**Thank you to my reviewers thus far! Your input really is encouraging! **


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